Discovery of energy-dependent phase variations in the polarization angle of Cen X-3
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2026
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| _version_ | 1866917309139910656 |
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| author | Zhao, Qing-Chang Tao, Lian Tsygankov, Sergey S. Poutanen, Juri Feng, Hua Zhang, Shuang-Nan Li, Hancheng Ge, Mingyu Zhang, Liang Mushtukov, Alexander A. |
| author_facet | Zhao, Qing-Chang Tao, Lian Tsygankov, Sergey S. Poutanen, Juri Feng, Hua Zhang, Shuang-Nan Li, Hancheng Ge, Mingyu Zhang, Liang Mushtukov, Alexander A. |
| contents | We present a detailed polarimetric analysis of Cen X-3 using \ixpe observations during its high state, revealing complex energy-dependent polarization behavior. While phase-averaged polarization shows marginal energy dependence, phase-resolved analysis reveals that the energy dependence of the polarization angle (PA) is strongly phase-dependent, with dramatic variations visible in a few specific phase intervals. We model this behavior using a two-component polarization framework consisting of a pulsed component governed by the Rotating Vector Model (RVM) and an additional phase-dependent component. By allowing the additional component's polarized flux to vary with pulse phase while fixing its PA, the observed complex behavior can be reconciled with a single set of RVM parameters across all energies. Spectroscopic analysis using \ixpe, \nicer and \nustar during the high state reveals phase-modulated intrinsic hydrogen column density and covering fraction, suggesting that the wind properties are modulated with pulse phase. Our findings indicate that phase-dependent scattering in the disk wind may significantly alter the observed polarization properties of X-ray pulsars. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_02780 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Discovery of energy-dependent phase variations in the polarization angle of Cen X-3 Zhao, Qing-Chang Tao, Lian Tsygankov, Sergey S. Poutanen, Juri Feng, Hua Zhang, Shuang-Nan Li, Hancheng Ge, Mingyu Zhang, Liang Mushtukov, Alexander A. High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena We present a detailed polarimetric analysis of Cen X-3 using \ixpe observations during its high state, revealing complex energy-dependent polarization behavior. While phase-averaged polarization shows marginal energy dependence, phase-resolved analysis reveals that the energy dependence of the polarization angle (PA) is strongly phase-dependent, with dramatic variations visible in a few specific phase intervals. We model this behavior using a two-component polarization framework consisting of a pulsed component governed by the Rotating Vector Model (RVM) and an additional phase-dependent component. By allowing the additional component's polarized flux to vary with pulse phase while fixing its PA, the observed complex behavior can be reconciled with a single set of RVM parameters across all energies. Spectroscopic analysis using \ixpe, \nicer and \nustar during the high state reveals phase-modulated intrinsic hydrogen column density and covering fraction, suggesting that the wind properties are modulated with pulse phase. Our findings indicate that phase-dependent scattering in the disk wind may significantly alter the observed polarization properties of X-ray pulsars. |
| title | Discovery of energy-dependent phase variations in the polarization angle of Cen X-3 |
| topic | High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.02780 |